The Favourite Explained: The Imbalance of Power
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- Опубліковано 1 бер 2019
- Oscar winner The Favourite (starring Olivia Colman, Rachel Weisz and Emma Stone) is one of the year's best and most complicated films. Here's our deep dive into its visuals, themes, and what the Yorgos Lanthimos film is really saying about power, class and love. Support The Take on Patreon: / thetake
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Do an analysis of The Lion King Please.
I would love to see a breakdown on “My Life as a Zucchini”
Will you do a video clip on If Beale Street could talk?! Although Regina King won the Oscar, it's unfortunate the movie was overlooked in most categories during the Oscar season. I'm looking forward to your take on it
You need someone to explain a movie to you @@AfroAngola?
@@MJ-cc4uf huh?! Isn't the purpose of this channel to analyze films and TV series?! I enjoy their take on things so what is the problem?! I 🙄🤷🏾♂️
“The Queen chooses flattery over love.”
Holy. Crap.
Isn't that what most of us prefer?
@ThatKidWhoLiesAboutHisAge OnTheInternet you will be suprised
Wholly Crap.
Steven Irizarry tell me about it why do u think we tik toks get the hype for??? Good content? No.
Human inherently desire adoration. Even if it's not genuine.
I always felt they were both bad forms of love, two extremes. Abigail was always flattering the Queen, even if it was a lie, just wanting to please her for her own gains. It's true she didn't actually love her. Sarah did love her, but I do feel like she was just too mean sometimes, valuing honesty over tenderness even when it was just not what the Queen needed to hear at the moment. The perfect love is somewhere in the middle.
this, also much of sarah's "honesty" was about manipulating the power of the queen, like with her saying she looks like a badger so she cant attend meetings she has, and the whole tax issue by lying about the discontent in her country
agree.
If Sarah loved her at all she wouldn't have been as cruel as she was moving the queen's husbands picture from the room really upset the queen and she lost power because she spent so much time away from the queen. The rabbits bit was a total myth never would have happened
exactly, it made my heart ache even more for the queen
I think it also showcased the two most popular ways to manipulate kings and queens back in the day.
I reject the assertion that Sarah’s love is “real” because it’s “honest”. Sarah is not loving, she is manipulative, controlling and abusive. Everything she does robs Anne of any power or individuality. She undermines any other friendships so that only she has the queen’s ear. She constantly feeds the Queen’s neurotic insecurities about her looks, knowledge or ability to govern, with the added message of “only me”. I’m the only one you can trust. Nobody else could ever love you. It’s a classic abuse tactic.
I agree, but I think she is a more straightforward and honest person than Abigail. She's a danger anyone can see.
I'm so glad that a film made by a man shows women in a very humane way and not as just girlfriends or housewives, not as one-dimensional. Women are very layered and this film truly shows that. Great analysis!
Who shows women as only "girlfriends or housewives, not as one-dimensional"? Who? In this day and age spare me the oppression routine
Have you only watched 3 movies in your life?
As the ladies explained, the movie reverses these sexist tropes by depicting men as foolish, vain and ineffectual and goes so far as to remove Anne's husband from the story. So you could argue that he's creating an extremely artificial context in order to make a point about gender. Which they did argue beautifully.
Anyone who doesn't understand why gender roles in narrative signify in this movie as a reaction to historic patterns of oppression is being willfully obtuse -- the All Lives Matter folks.
It is really great. I feel women can just be these token forgettable sidekicks that are used only to drive the male lead forward.
Couldn’t agree more! I could really relate to all three leads as people
Even though it is hard to sympathize with someone who becomes as cruel as Abigail, on the final shot of her face I actually feel sorry for her. You can see the sudden realization on her face that she is back where she started. Serving as a sex toy to someone much older and powerful than her. Her father was supposed to be her greatest protector and he sold her out. So she became her own protector and fought so hard to never be on the same situation again... and then SHE ends up selling herself out. It is heartbreaking.
I dunno, I would've felt bad for her if she didn't start crushing the rabbit with her foot. She became callous and greedy and conniving. She got what she deserved in the end from toying with everyone's lives for the sake of her own.
I don't have feelings for her
@@Marfmellow88at thé end she became an asshole it's true but thé whole ending scène feel kinda rapey to me and nobody deserve that treatment
“There’s always a price to pay”
This video is edited better than Bohemian Rhapsody.
@Noah Redding Sigh. You know how it is - great editing, no Oscar. A bunch of statutory rape, Oscar.
☕️
@ThatKidWhoLiesAboutHisAge OnTheInternet it won Best Editing because the lead was good? Hm.
Interesting. 🤔
@ThatKidWhoLiesAboutHisAge OnTheInternet He was awful and sounded like he had cotton balls stuffed into his mouth the whole time, he also barely emoted or moved his face, in contrast to the real Freddie who was known for being ver animated and emotionally volatile. That movie was a homophobic disgrace. I spit on it.
@@Ttoby89 high-larious!
The final scene basically summed how it was always about power. Abigail stepped on the rabbit because she could. And Anne forces Abigail to rub her legs just because she can.
Actually, I think the last image was about Abigail still being in the same place, "pleasing genitals", no matter how high in the ranks she rises. She has not made progress from her early days, making security an illusion, the rabbits overflowing representing everyones misery until they are burried underneath it. Thanks for the beautiful essay, I love this movie and saw in in theaters twice.
I saw it in theaters four times.
@@jordipalmos7544 Same with me. Each time I watched I got something more from it.
@@strawberryseason it gets clearer and clearer that power lies at the centre of this story as the video explains.
Emma's character definitely has improved her life though. At least she's not starving, or being beaten/whipped/cut or otherwise hurt physically, or being gang raped by men who could've given her dangerous sexual diseases. Now she is a lady married to a baron who, even if she one day loses favour of the Queen, could still provide her with basic needs like food and medicine.
That's actually why I think it's a big mistake for her to cheat(?) on her husband who really hasn't done that much to deserve that. I mean, at least he's young and good-looking and seems to “match” her sadistic character quite well. He wouldn't be the love of her life but he's not intolerably unpleasant or cruel to her either.
If she works harder at her marriage, even just by pretending to love and care about her husband (and she's really good at pretending anyway), I think she can achieve some degree of security that is much higher than what she has by the end of the movie. From what I know, once you're officially married to a nobleman, even the Queen wouldn't lightly divorce you or punish you in serious ways (unless she has legal evidence of you doing something very bad/unlawful) because it would, of course, affect your husband's noble family as well. And I don't think a nobleman can divorce his wife easily, especially if she has had children. He may have mistresses and affairs, but I don't think Abigail would care much about that.
If only Abigail hasn't become so complacent and borderline reckless to the point of stepping on a rabbit in the Queen's room (I feel like this is a "plot-hole" that I have nothing against because it carries such deep/central meaning but, at the same time, I believe Abigail's character is more cautious than that), along with over-indulgence in material luxuries and publicly disrespecting her husband, she might be able to slowly step back from serving and pleasing the Queen (who may get bored of her after a while anyway) who is much more powerful, volatile and dangerous than her husband.
All that being said, you're absolutely right that Abigail's misery is the fact that she cannot, within the existing legal/political/social structure, possibly achieve the things that she (and every other sane human being in the world) longs for. I would say she has made progress from her early days, only because she begins from such a LOW, desperate place that any satisfaction of the most basic needs (food, shelter, personal space, escape from extreme violence) is already a big improvement which is, of course, not enough for her or anyone else, since ultimately we as humans all desire security, freedom, dignity and equality none of which Abigail is ever able to obtain.
Rabbits have also been seen as symbols of insanity. When Lady Sarah was the favorite the rabbits were kept in cages, and were contained. Once Lady Abigail became the favorite they ran loose and were everywhere
FINALLY! On another note: Abigail & Sarah both made the same huge mistake, they forgot who was in charge, the whole film you're laughing but there is always this feeling of danger coming. Like we already know (I mean if you've not read the history already) that all this fighting will get all these characters nowhere near their personal goal.
Yes, that's a great way to sum it up. In the end, no one is truly pleased with their decisions. Sarah is banished, Abigail is again treated more like a servant to the Queen, and the Queen herself is left resigned to the fact that she traded her trusted advisor for a bad one.
@@trinaq Imagine if Abigail saw Anne slap Sarah..... Abigail got so much into the fighting for the favour of someone who she 1. Doesn't love 2. Is mentally unstable.
@@Allonsy305 While Abigail's treachery ends up costing her Anne and Sarah, it's easy to feel for her as well. She's been mistreated and abused for so long, that she struggles to escape her life and enter better circumstances.
@@trinaq typical
Secret Spoilers: The Queen knew everything the whole time lol (and was just playing dumb)
but she did not give 2 shits about these two fighting
it was all a show to her lol
Starring Oscar winner Rachel Weisz, Oscar winner Emma Stone, and OSCAR WINNER OLIVIA COLMAN!
Yes, Olivia Colman finally got her Oscar, which was thoroughly deserved!🏆 I hope that Glenn Close eventually gets a win, as she's been nominated 7 times without a single win over the past three decades.
Rachel Weisz for Best Supporting actress, tho. 🙄
@@epie6 and Emma Stone's leading one was totally undeserved, had she not won she would have campaigned harder for this one and actually gotten an Oscar for an outstanding performance alas...
@@trinaq I hope that Glenn wins for the upcoming adaptation of the Sunset Boulevard stage musical for which she won a Tony.
E U have you won best supporting actress Oscar?
One of the images I loved was after the Queen had a stroke and was paralyzed on half of her body around the time Sarah was ousted and Abigail took her place. This quite literally showed in an extreme physical representation that the Queen really did lose her _"other half"_ in the form of Sarah. This remained a constant reminder for the Queen in this film that she had made the wrong choice not only based on her inward feelings about the overall situation but now serving as a permanent reminder in the misery of her remaining days with Abigail.
So *that’s* what it was! I was wondering, but didn’t know for sure. Who knew there was such a clever symbolism?
Tbh when I heard about this movie I was expecting the story of Lady Hamilton the favorite of the Queen Maria Carolina.
Sarah and Anne felt like they were in a long term carer relationship. Sarah gave Anne everything she needed but nothing she wanted while Abigail gave Anne everything she wanted but not what she needed. The ideal relationship would bring both things together.
Perfectly said!
I’m so British that I feel oddly satisfied to see the word favourite spelt correctly in the title of this film
I spell it that way & put a “u” in color. I just like England
in the us they used to charge by letter for ads.
We in the English speaking Caribbean... spell "colour", "favourite".
@@SAILOREARTH89 we also took the French out of our English.
i'm Jamaican and i feel the exact same way.
I was thinking that the tyles of the Palace are like a game of chess, with everyone scheming to be the queen.
I was thinking that as well or maybe even a yin/yang comparison
I also heard that played into the reasoning behind the costumes. All of the black and white makes them appear as chess pieces.
Also, as the film progresses, Abigail and Sarah's costume palettes gradually intermingle and their individual differences blurred.
Oooh clever!
I think Sandy Powell said something about how she deliberately only dressed all the women (who weren't servants) in black and white to resemble a game of chess.
And all the men were put in colour to resemble background decoration, which is what women usually are relegated to in many films.
Sarah's behavior towards the queen was psychologically and physically violent. Within a romantic relationship, today it would be considered as domestic violence. As a social psychologist, I think it is irresponsible to say that through her violent ways she loved the queen.
I love that dialogue towards the end when Sarah says “oh my god you think you’ve won” because she realizes the person in which she was fighting against was not only playing a different game but was not even a worthy opponent to her and probably does not feel bad because in reality Sarah won the war to an ignorant foe.
This movie reminded me of All About Eve. It has a similar premise in that the woman you initially root for turns out to be immoral, and concludes with a hollow victory.
Rachel Weisz made the same comparison!
That's true, when you really consider the parallels. Both stories involve a seemingly naive, sweet young woman (Abigail/Eve) who is taken under the wing of an older woman (Anne/Margo), and eventually usurps the loyal companion of the woman (Sarah/Karen).
But this story has the added intensity of climbing the social ladder of a kingdom and politics! In All About Eve, her backstabbing to become an actress didn’t have nearly the effect on people that Emma Stone’s actions did. She was such a sociopath that people were literally dying in the kingdom from the lies she fed to the queen but she didn’t care in the slightest, as long as she got what she wanted. SO messed up and epic!!
@@thetake I wonder though, whether All About Eve was a little more in the classic (and still present) vein of gleefully punishing women for having a sexuality or otherwise 'sinning', whereas The Fave is imo correctly targeting the social structures that led to the women's downfall. You know how horror movies and TV shows love to kill minorities as soon as they find happiness? This film is sort of the opposite - 'You're a victim of circumstance, sure, but you had privilege and fucked up impressively, so suffer' as opposed to 'You had the GALL to try and rise to a higher class / be female or gay and like sex / try to date a white person when you're not one / so you must be tortured before you DIE!!' etc
Mm I need to see both of these movies
Abigail is kind of a survivalist. It’s the only thing she knows: a need to survive. Sarah didn’t really have any idea that she herself had to worry about her own survival at court.
The male look of the time was called the "Fop", with grandiose wigs, stockings, and high heels, and large, complex coats. They were inspired by Louis XIV's Versailles.
The fashion went out of style with Beau Brummel, who introduced George IV to the Dandy, which is the precursor of the modern male business suit.
Oh wow, interesting!
I was so hoping you would acknowledge this rare beauty: A sophisticated meditation on power/class/love, which is visually stunning, impeccably acted and treasure that will be enjoyed by us cinephiles for years to come. I also love how this film will bring many into the wondrous world of Yorgos Lanthimos.
Yes! You got it! A true delight!
No one analyzes film and its themes like this channel. It’s honestly so well thought out and organized, this could easily be used in tons of film classes
"woman are like other human beings" … stunning … who knew?
@Lindy T Amen, sister! and all over the world
Not half the population
Yes most of us already knew this and I know I’m a human being too as a woman. No need to remind me.
@Lindy T that's complete sophistry or sublime sarcasm. if the latter, well done. if the former, I don't believe that you really want men n women to be treated identically all the time, you want to keep all the circumstances where women are advantaged just as they are. there are lots of terribly written characters in a century of movies, but that's only evidence of the creative bankruptcy of Hollywood cravenly digging for our last dollar with the least effort. I'll make no defense of George Lucas' dialogue, but there are women writers and they can make just as terrible movies as any man [can you feel the equality].
as for women authors, how many times has any of the Austen's novels or little women been made into a movie, and that's just two authors. middle class white women are the most pampered class in history.
the fact that Abigail will do anything to feel secure & comfortable, always trying to find ways to make herself as safe as possible, only to end up the "favorite" of the queen, the most unstable character in the film whose favor / sanity could sway at any given moment, is so bittersweet. It's like, she climbs and climbs during the story, only to end up with the most powerful person who, ironically, will probably make her feel constantly unsafe and on edge. And it's clear throughout that Abigail doesn't really understand the queen on a deeper level, so seeing her in that final shot, put in her place and forced to act on the mercy of the queen's mournful & mad whims, totally made sense. She literally could not rise any higher, and is still at the mercy of someone else. It's crazy how if Sarah had stuck around, Abigail would actually probably have been better off and in a more secure environment. Sarah was right -- Abigail thought she had won, but actually miscalculated the game.
Now this, THIS is Best Picture material. Shame, although, it will always be remembered and beloved from now on. Fantastic, intoxicating film ❤️
NO. THIS MOVIE IS SO STUPID.
Need we say more, amazing movie that joins the cannon of great, unusual period films. It also would have been a chance to reward a film with actual comedy which sets it apart from most Oscar bait.
Don’t rate!
Feminist politics
Agreed, but at least they got Best Actress right. Coleman was superb. Never forget seeing her in 2011 in Tyrannasour. This should be her second Oscar for Best Actress as she's actually better in the former.
While i was watching The Favourite, i couldn't stop thinking in Sofia Coppola's very underrated film, Marie Antoinette. Although i bet Coppola didn't intend to make a film about power or class, she did meditate, in an exceptionally way, about society's expectations on young women and how that affects them/us. I adore that film so much because of that.
And i thought The Favourite shares that quality with that film, in the sense that it humanizes women (and it also shows how stupid and vain men can be sometimes). For me, The Favourite is an exceptional work on women's complexities. I loved it!
Marie Antoinette is often mocked as low brow but its actually very very good.
yes I love Marie Antoinette too. I respect and admire how Sofia Coppola managed to make a pop movie about a serious issue.
Totally agree.
That movie looked like a party in visual but it was so sad and depressing.
Marie Antoinette was about eating cake and drinking wine and wearing wigs. A movie abut basically nothing. The Favourite is superior in every way.
And to imagine that this MASTERPIECE lost to Green Book at the Oscars...............
True, it's like the Moonlight/ La La Land debacle all over again!
Caitriona Quigley but Moonlight really deserves it
@@cheesecakelasagna Amen.
We truly live in a society
Madalin Grama bruh, so the Academy was prestigious back then? Nah, they have long list of award fails and snubbed a lot of filmmakers of the acknowledgement they deserved, even straight up not even nominating big deserving movies at those times. It's always been a joke.
As much as Sarah's love is honest, you wouldn't say it's the kind of love you would instantly feel loved and supported. Actually, it's the kind of love you would recognized "love" when you experienced something lower.
I guess at the end of the day, there's a crucial balance of honesty and tenderness for a better communication of one's love.
This video made me rewatch the movie again and I realized something. I always wondered why Sarah’s face is not in the ending scene as well, since the central focus of the movie was the three of them, but now seeing it I realized that the faces of Abigail and Queen Anne overlaid with the rabbits signal that they are the losers of this movie. While it may seem that being cast out, Sarah has lost the most, the opposite is true. Sarah may have lost the favour of the Queen, but is very much free now, while the other two women, as a direct result of their choices, are now trapped. Abigail sacrificed all her morals in the sake of becoming “the favourite” and the much desired safety and comfort she promised herself of this position is not the reality. She is still treated as a servant and while not being bullied by the kitchen staff anymore, she is now bullied by the Queen. She gained nothing that she wanted. Anne, because of her ego and her want to be loved and admired, sacrificed the only person that truly cared about her for shallow flattery. While she foolishly thought that Abigail is a better person than Sarah, she now fully understands that the opposite is true. She bonded with Abigail over the rabbits and seeing her pressing the rabbit into the ground with her foot completely and definitely shattered the image she had of her and the woman she thought she was is now dead in her eyes. In the end she has lost both women and is truly alone.
andd everybody knows it was the best screenplay of last year.
Deborah Davis was *ROBBED*
Screenplay, costume Design, Art Direction, cinematography, Actress of course, which it won, Direction, (sorry Roma, but it was not as good), and Best Picture So it should have won at least seven of the Oscars it was up for. I'd also add Rachel for Supporting Actress, although, truthfully they were all leads.
What's great about this film is that you can't just put these characters in a box, i.e. Abigail is a manipulator/protagonist the queen is an idiot or The Crazy Monarch and Sarah is the "not you ever age woman" stereotype. The queen is an "idiot" because she has gone insane from multiple heartbreaks of losing her children from not knowing who *really* loves her and the expectations she has to live up to. She's been beaten into a pulp and she can't take it anymore. That's why when we see her face she has tired and wistful eyes. There asking "does any one love me." Abigail, for me is kinda like the queen. abigail is born into poverty and has not been treated like a person for as long as she can remember. That's why she was so glad to have her own room. And like the queen she is beaten by this world literally. Of course that doesn't excuse her behavior but does put things into perspective. She is lost and she's just trying to have the dream life. Many of the poor dream of this, (I should know I grew up poor) she is brutal but only because she thought she had to. And Sarah she is born into a wealthy family, she could have just spent her money on wine, parties, dresses and all the glamorous things money can buy. But she doesn't do that, that's because she want things to get better, not for her, but for everyone the whole country. That's why she is so strict and business like sometimes. That doesn't mean she doesn't love the queen and only befriended her because she want to take charge. Sarah is strict and guarded but that doesn't mean she's uncaring. It just means she's mature and responsible
Abigail wasn't born into poverty. She used to be a lady, but her dad lost her in a card game. Yeah, she has been treated like crap, but I think part of her tenacity comes from the fact that she feels she should be a lady, something has been stolen from her.
When I initially watched this film, I liked it, but was mystified over some of the choices, including the inclusion of livestock running rampant. However, thanks to a second watch and your in-depth analysis, these choices start to make so much more sense.
I agree that Sarah is the true heroine of the film, despite the narrative placing her in the antagonistic role. She IS the only one who is honest with Queen Anne, while being rather blunt in her dealings with her, does show some hidden affection for her. This is in stark contrast to Abigail, who acts sweet towards the Queen, while scheming to overthrow Sarah as "The Favourite".
I also enjoyed your explanation as to how the women took centre stage in the proceedings, while the men were mostly kept in the background, which is an inverse of typical period dramas wherein the men run the show and the women are background figures whose main function is to look beautiful. Olivia Colman certainly deserved her Oscar, especially for the scene where she's explaining to Abigail that her 17 pet bunnies are symbols of the children she's lost.
The women in The Favourite are to film what the women of Screen Prism are to UA-cam
"Absolute power corrupts absolutely." This film shows us this very well. And I'm glad you brought up the fact that women can be horrific and disgusting and awful in life. Some of the worst people I have ever known are women lol... I am a woman. We can be TERRIBLE. I'm happy that a movie finally captures that fact so well. Awesome video, The Take
I have to agree.
And I too am a woman.
power does not corrupt, it just reveals the corruption that's already there
@@bobpolo2964 I guess you could say that power always reveals. Because when you have enough power to do what you always wanted to do, you see what the person always wanted to do.
Should have won Best Picture
Yes, it did have stunning visuals and was beautifully made, but I'm ultimately glad that "Green Book" won.
I agree.
This movie or Roma
@@trinaq green book severely misrepresented racial issues.
It's one of those movies about race that is designed to still appeal to white audiences and never make them uncomfortable.
It was the only wrong answer.
Tabeazzz Yeah, it kind of perpetuates the "white guy saviour" idea.
Fantastic video.
One aspect that inferred from the film, was that the fish-eye lens also had the effect of making the scenes inside the palace mimic the domed rabbit cages. As you said it made it like a prison, but I drew that as a double inference especially in that final shot where the rabbit imagery is overlayed with the Queen and Abigail.
This movie takes you by surprise.. one might think "oh, it's old English tale, so it'll be long and boring." But it isn't so at all! It's refreshing yet classic revenge-jealousy story. The movie keeps you invested from first to last. All the three women capture the essence. ❤️BTW, I love Emma.
Abigail won the battle, but Sarah won the war.
I'd say rather they all lost. There are no winners because it's a corrupt system that can never let anyone truly be happy.
julia howe On the contrary, they all lost.
One lost their sanity, other love and the last humanity.
Quite poignant actually.
A pyrrhic victory indeed.
so happy Olivia won the oscar for this!!! All brilliant performances!!🔥🔥
"Look like the innocent flower but be the serpent under it"
This is truly disgusting.
Its nice to see Emma Stone do another serious, historical-fiction piece. She looks stunning in period costume and has such an elegant sounding British accent.
This is really good. It really is. I have so many feelings about this that I don’t even know if I can express them accurately.
I know, for real. I hadn't watched a film that made me feel as floored and as heartbroken and as introspected in a long time.
@@colesandick446 This is understandable on a personal level. Because you don't always know who's there for you vs who's there for what you can do for them.
You're not alone. First time I saw it in a theater, I had to watch it again the next day
no love for my boi Nicky Hoult playing the role of Peak Fop?
Nicholas Hoult was pretty credible in this movie, it's a shame that he hardly gets mentioned when the movie comes up in conversation, likely because he played a smaller role compared to the three leading ladies.
he was great.
He was so fucking hilarious. Every time he was on screen I couldn’t help but chuckle.
He was terrific. He really shines when he’s scheming!
He has always been good even when the source material is only just okay. Like, I really love the zombie rom com he was in (can't remember the name rn). Even though it was just a trope-y film (with a few unique positives), he was so endearing in it.
Absolutely loved the final point about how sick- and sadness trickles down from the top to the bottom in an inequal society - feels so relevant and true. Why are so far away from flat hierarchys?
Sarah doesn't love the queen any more than her cousin and may have been honest but wasn't real either. If she wasn't looking to have the true power of the country she would have taken the queen and fixed her makeup instead and putting her down and sending her back. We never see the queen walking towards the court with confidence again. The queen's weakness is a direct result of Sarah's abuse. Sarah is the head viper who contorted her cousin and through her neglect if the queen caused her own downfall. She was incapable of love and didn't truly see the danger her husband was in as a sacrifice, rather a pc way to be honored while being rid of him. If her country meant so much to her, wouldn't she have taken their needs into consideration instead of pushing to double the taxes?
I wonder what event triggered the queen's disdain of music and why her husband wasn't fighting for power.
Damn this even uses the same visual techniques as the movie. Bravo!
The Favourite was probably one of the funniest period movies I've seen. The power struggle between Weisz and Stone's characters was great too.
The dance scene was brilliant - imho the best of 2018.
Should’ve won best picture tbh. Yorgos is truly one of my fave directors. This film is creative, not afraid to be different and oh so entertaining. Stepping out of the comfort zone is what best picture films are all about, right? I really wanted this movie to win but I guess a movie lead by 3 women is too much for the Academy.
This is some fabulous commentary. And, the focus on Sarah & Abigail reveal what everyone who has seen the film knows already. Rachel Weisz and Emma Stone had the leading roles, and Olivia Colman played a supporting role. Her character was much more powerful than the other two, but Queen Anne is really just a pawn in a competition between Sarah & Abigail. The story belongs to them.
I already LOVED The Favourite before I saw this video, but now I have such an improved and deeper appreciation of the movie as a whole.
Whilst watching the film, I was reminded of King Leer. It was his vanity that was the downfall… the oldest daughters sucked up and pandered to his request that they tell him they loved him more than anyone else; he banished the sincere daughter.
I think the queen chose flattery because she didn’t exactly receive kindness as a princess. So I think she chose the person who she saw as kind to her
The Favourite was robbed of the Best Picture award. So unfair.
This film and Roma were imo the best films of 2018. Unfortunately Roma was only nominated for best foreign film which it of course won
@@pikapo16 "Roma" was also up for Best Picture as well, tho.
@@wylier yeah, my mistake. Thought it should have won though
And this is what lost Best Screenplay AND Best Picture to Green Book? Damn.
The Favourite was my favorite. Now it is even more so. Thank You.
I genuinely didn't expect this good an analysis from a channel that feels a bit like Mojo, but damn, you really nailed this. Amazing film, and great insights from you folks!
I’ve just seen the movie for the second time and it’s totally incapacitated me. Once in a while you see a movie that just whacks you so hard across the face with all kinds of thoughts and feelings and it leaves you reeling. I won’t stop thinking about this movie for months I guarantee. I’ve just come out of an abusive relationship a couple months ago, and seeing how Abigail enters as a doting and kindhearted women who transforms slowly into an almost unrecognizable viper is an experience that hits very close to home. Truly a masterpiece, I hope Lanthimos knows how much his vision has affected those who’ve seen the film, and that Stone, Weisz, and Colman recognize the masterclass in acting that they’ve immortalized with this movie.
I loved your take on the film, but does anyone else think that Sarah has been portrayed in too good of a light ? She talks alot about loving her country so much, that her intentions are pure but haven't her actions showen other wise ? She apprently loves the Queen because "love does not lie" yet her discussions with the Queen are "somehow" always setup so that she gets what she she wants ? In your take you say that she attempts to make her feel better about herself but isn't that all part of her manipulaion tactics, exactly like Abigail . I think it was easier to portray Sarah as " the tough lover & the only true honest relationship" and Abigail as "the viper and a lie " both Sarah's words btw ;) .We all love a Good vs Evil story, but I don't think this was it.
Sarah released her memoirs. The movie uses those as the basis so it makes sense that the movie would show Sarah in a better light than Abigail. Sarah was very antagonistic to Anne in real life and attempted to control Anne. That was part of her downfall as the favourite. Abigail was not as forceful as Sarah and was a welcome change to Anne. Of course, there is also no evidence that the relationships Anne had with Sarah and Abigail was anything but platonic. Sarah only accused Anne of having lesbian affairs after she had been dismissed and Sarah was feeling spiteful. Of course Abigail was not perfect either.
I agree that Sarah was shown as if she was the "good guy" when in reality she was just a different kind of jerk essentially. She only "cared" about the queen as long as she got what she wanted. Just like Abigail just a different kind of want. Even though Sarah published memoirs that show her in the best light history shows that she was often cruel to Anne. Essentially mocking Anne for mourning her husband's passing and treating Anne like an idiot who couldn't do anything. Sarah was basically as self serving as Abigail she just had the luxury of being able to have other "causes" than her immediate well being.
Sarah did have a better mind than the queen and was more fit to rule. She was mean to the queen in the movie and her memoir but Sarah did care about Anne. She helped Princess Anne get the throne and invested a lot of time on their relationship. A close relationship like that can not be all fake and manipulative.
I agree, Sarah may have loved her but it is a toxic selfish love. Abigail claims to be sweet and desperate but she acts out of malice as much as self preservation. All the characters have such complexity
I thought that it wasn't quite as straightforward as you put it. Sarah was undeniably bonechillingy controlling and agressive, I don't think the way she was was good for the queen in any sense. I think she broke her and demeaned her every step of the way. In the end Anne made the right decision in casting her away, even though it was a difficult and lonely life afterwards, at least she was finally fully her own person.
For me the message of the movie was that love on its own has no merit if it comes from a toxic source. Sarah did indeed love the queen but it really doesn't mean much or redeem her in any way.
I don't think the Queen had been a full person since her miscarriages. It's clear the grief ate her away and the last image really drove home her brokenness.
interestingly though, as sarah does show love to the queen, she is also just as damaging to the queen too, she always treated the queen like an infant who couldnt understand or even vouce out her opinions on the decisions she needed to make. But abigail made her more assertive and capable of making decisions for the state. Sarah isnt all that good either which i love cause it makes it so much more complex
this is my favourite film... the aesthetics, the stunning music, the comedy, the characters, the writing... all of it is just spectacular
for an old person, a lie is sometimes better than an honest blunt truth
my favourite thing about this movie and a few other historical movies, like the great gatsy (2013), Marie Antoinette, etc, is when parties or scenes of luxury decadence are set with entirely modern music, because it completely slaps, connects the audience with the historically distant characters, and gives the setting an element of relatability that can be lost when trying to immerse yourself into such a alien setting/time period.
The movie is beautiful, the the title is stretched in a way that makes people uncomfortable, the sounds makes people uncomfortable, the lighting, the angles, the tones and dialogues are all uncomfortable and this is beautiful. The costumes and color schemes are splendid in showing the power dynamic in visual form, loved the idea of period but not being historical correct.
How anybody was surprised when Olivia Colman won the Oscar is beyond me. She did laps around the competition, at ease.
This is good stuff. I found the fish-eye lens really distracting, but the more I talk about this movie and listen to deconstructions like this, the more I like it.
MY best picture of 2018
The great thing about this film is choosing your own favourite and having that change throughout the movie. Also having to check your morals because of your choice too. It's so friggin good.
Wonderful analysis! After I saw this film I couldn’t tell if I liked it or not... I knew the performances were excellent and it was visually stunning but I wasn’t sure how I felt overall. Months later and I’m still thinking about it. This video expertly explains why this movie is indeed, quite brilliant. Great job!
10:30-10:36 anyone else get slightly caught off guard or was expecting her to say 'but is really the serpent underth' '
I love this so much. Such perfectly explained commentary on The Favourite's meditation on inequality, love, and politics.
The entire time I was watching this film, I was thinking: How on Earth are these people performing all of this oral sex, and this was the era when bathing was seen as a novelty? 🤢
With each generation, we get further and further away from animals and rawness of nature. I bet Abigail was appalled by what people in medieval times found normal.
@@zevlibin8892 People in medieval times bathed regularly.
I'm sure they washed their bits regularly, just not their entire bodies regularly
@@selina5598 They bathed regularly during the Middle Ages. About once a week regularly. And washed bits pretty much daily. They even had sort of deo sticks made from aluminium salts. People in the 18th century sponged down because they were afraid of "bad humours" (aka water-born infections) from bathing in warm water. They changed their underclothes at least daily, the elites even several times a day. And they still used the deo sticks. The myth of the unclean Dark Ages and 18th century is exactly that: a myth. Thank the Victorians for that.
At first, I was skeptical of this video as through much of it, it seemed to skirt around the very heart of the story which is, as I saw it, the actual feeling of love. Much of it is romantic, but one also gets the impression that, even if the romance between Sarah and Anne were to (somehow) dim, there would still be a mutual respect and care. But I was wrong as the video was clearly saving the most important bits for its own section and it was so perfectly and succinctly set up and explained. Whoever edited this and wrote up the script was amazing.
Love your work, ladies.
I worked a place where had imbalance and inequality, it's a very negative work place. It change the people and started to be all about jealousy, bad talks and who is best. I saw it how it changed people, who good people turned to be bad and use everyone how they pleased and to show they are better. Suddenly, realize no one is your friend anymore there and previously you thought someone is your friend she is not and betrayed your friendship and all good you did.
I think if a workplace only have women or men, or one of them has outnumber it cause imbalance and competition is starts. I think this is happened, there too. I quit, because I couldn't stand this environment, and I didn't like it they treat me bad, because they want to shine good. The place reminds me this movie. it is no friendship in these place or real human connections. Only one friend left from there, she quit on time, before the place change her too, thank God. Never met, kinder, generous and sweet person as her. I am grateful she left and we stayed friends.
This movie is becoming new Amadeus for me :D
I don't think it's fair to compare the two
Every analysis you girls make is wonderful. Thank you so much for doing it!
Well, I've been watching your channel for a long time now, and I have to say, it feels amazing to see a film from a Greek director featured in your channel for the first time!!!😁 Much love from Greece girls, you're doing an amazing job! We are all so proud of how far Yorgos has come👏
Great analysis, Amazing work put out by you guys.I love it ,hoping for much more content from this channel.
My favourite video you’ve made, it’s amazing how much this movie has packed into it, and equally amazing how much you guys took from it 💖
This was a FANTASTIC video. Just watched this straight from having seen the film. Love all these details. Subscribed!
Just found you guys from your GOT videos. You guys do really good work, one of my new fave channels.
I really enjoy your videos, I just love how you break things down
Thank you so much for this, I have been waiting for a thoughtful commentary on this film! ScreenPrism delivers again. Love you guys.
The two of you always astounded me with how insightful you are. I enjoy your videos and your perspective immensely.
This channel always brings new outlooks into art, through its insight I've learned a lot about analyzing characters and films in general, thanks a lot. The Take is a gift to humanity.
I just loved the Favorite. It involves such different meanings and an ending so rich in significance. Its such an awesome film in wich you get 3 main stars giving 100% of themselves. i love colman winning best actress because she was maginificent. but either stone or weissz could won too. because this film had no really main character or support one. Such a brilliant photography reminded me of Barry Lindon and seeing in your essay it not only compares to it on its photography but the comparison of character development and such.. was such a relieve. Awesome video as always.
Beautiful commentary. You opened up my eyes to a lot. Thank you
I always remember sitting in the cinema amazed at all the costumes as well. It reminds me of Sofia Coppola’s Marie Antoinette a very modern take on something historical and juicy. Something gossip columnist will revel in if it happened today.
I haven't even watched the film but the analysis was so thorough,detailed and thoughtfully crafted, that I have I huge appreciation for that movie now. Excellent job, well done!
The Take has the best take on this film out all the analyses I've seen. Bravo! I don't regret subscribing to this channel.
Thoughtful, thorough analysis of a complex film 👍🏾👍🏽👍🏿
This video is putting everything into words i somehow sensed while watching the movie. Thanks for that.
Wow! This is an excellent analysis. I'm learning so much on this channel.
Your channel is so incredible, I love how you open my eyes about some of my favorite films ! I'm happy now to better understand this movie, especially the last shot with the bunny and all, I was confused but now, I understand and, god, that's so good !
Neo-Classic Maiden Mother Crone theme. I will make a point of seeing this film. Very good review, TY
awesome video as always!!!! so well structured!!! love this film
And yet another extraordinary video, girls, you are AMAZING, and I am so glad to know you are getting the recognition you deserve.
Hard work and lots of talent, that’s what you two represent 😊
was surprised by how well this vid was so well-researched and profound